April 29 marked 100 days of the Trump administration, which has brought budget cuts and executive orders that have impacted the work of many nonprofits and funders and cast uncertainty about what might happen in the future. To help make meaning of the events of the past few months and to begin to imagine a way forward, our team at Community Wealth Partners convened an intimate group of senior leaders of nonprofits and foundations in Washington DC to connect and share resources and experiences. The conversation touched on a few themes that were top of mind for participants. We are sharing these themes and resources in hopes that this might offer some ideas or a sense of solidarity to other funders and nonprofit leaders navigating similar challenges and uncertainty.
Questions top of mind for funders and nonprofit leaders
How can we support the well-being of our staff? Policy and budget changes that have occurred in the new administration affect many nonprofit staff professionally and personally. Leaders in the discussion described stress and overwhelm among their teams and a desire to do more to support their well-being.
In addition, layoffs caused by budget shortfalls is a real possibility for many nonprofits across the country. Leaders who are facing difficult decisions when it comes to staffing will need to pay attention to caring for the people who are departing, caring for the team who is staying, and caring for the sustainability of the organization—making sure to retain core knowledge and skills needed for the organization to continue to have impact.
RESOURCES:
- Self-Care During Challenging Times
- What’s Good on the Ship? Assessing Team Strengths and Mission-Critical Needs
Where might we forge new partnerships for collective strength and solidarity? Moments of crisis often lead to innovation and new alliances. Leaders in the discussion recognized an opportunity to foster solidarity across diverse communities that are facing similar barriers –whether that be access to affordable housing, healthy food, clean air, safe communities, quality education and child care, or something else. They also saw an opportunity to branch out and connect with new and/or unlikely partners. Partnerships and collaboration will be critical for making meaningful progress on the issues nonprofits are working on.
RESOURCES:
How can we shift narratives that stymie the progress we want to make? Many of the organizations represented in the conversation have equity as a central part of their mission, but now words like “equity” and “inclusion” are part of a lengthy list of words banned from federal grants. Leaders in the discussion are thinking about if and when they might need to have messages ready to share in response to events connected to their mission or potential attacks on their organizations or communities. They also are considering when it makes sense to shift language in order to keep doing the work, opportunities to use more specific language to help clarify the work they are doing, and messages that might help bring more people along with their mission and vision.
RESOURCES:
- Messages that Advance Diversity and Equal Opportunity
- Civic Language Perceptions
- DEI Was Never Going to Save Us
Where do we want our sector to be four years from now? While there was collective grief over some of the changes that have happened and the impact on communities—such as the recent gutting of AmeriCorps—leaders in the discussion also recognized that the status quo has been far from perfect. They challenged each other to imagine what might be rebuilt coming out of this challenging time—a social sector that is more just, more equitable, and more impactful. As funders and nonprofit leaders grapple with the challenges of today, there is an opportunity to dream forward to a future that could look very different from the current reality and that could also be creating greater impact for communities.
RESOURCES:
- Scenario Planning: A Tool to Help Nonprofits Navigate Change and Uncertainty
- Transformation Insights
- Webinar: Leading for the Long-Term in Uncertain Times (recorded in 2020)
What else has been on your mind? Connect with us to share how you are leading through change and uncertainty or if you’d like thought partnership on a question that is top of mind for you.